Machine for opening skins



P. YOUNG. MACHINE FOR OPENING SKINS.

(No Model.)

No. 541,304. Patented June 18 .1895.

WITNESSES r mums mm ca, Puma-Luna, WQSMINGTBN n c the skins and open them out fiat.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFI E..

PATRICK YOUNG, OF DANBURY, CONNECTICUT.

MACHINE FOR OPENING SKINS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 541,304, dated June 18, 189 5.

Application filed February 19, 1895- Serial No. 533,937- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, PATRICK YOUNG, a citizen of the United States, residing at Danbury, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for Opening Skins; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has for its object to produce simple and convenient mechanism for opening the dried skins of fur bearing animals.

It is well understood by those familiar with the art that the skins of fur bearing animals are stripped off, dried and packed solidly in bales for shipment. It is furthermore well understood that in order to remove the fur from the skins as for example for making hats and for similar purposes it is necessary to split This is true no matter what process may be employed to separate the fur from the skin. The operation of opening the skins has heretofore so far as I am aware, been performed by hand,

and the splitting has been done with a knife,

thus making the operation of preparing the skins for the removal of the fur, quite a slow and expensive operation. This operation I now perform by means of a machine which opens and splits the skins rapidly thus eflecting a great saving of time and .consequently in the cost of preparing the fur for use as in the manufacture of hats and for other analogous purposes.

With this end in view I have devised the novel machine of which the following description in connection with the accompanying drawings is a specification, numbers being used to designate the several parts.

Figure 1 is a side view of my novel machine, and Fig. 2 is a rear elevation. V

1 denotes a suitable bed or table which is supported by legs 2.

3 denotes a standard which may be rigidly secured to the bed and has journaled thereon a shaft at carrying a saw 5 and a belt pulley 6 through which rotary movement is imparted to the shaft and saw by a belt, not shown, passing over the belt pulley.

7 denotes suitable boxes on the standard in which the shaft is journaled.

8 denotesasuitable horn projecting upward from the bed. This horn I make approximately in the form of a half cone the face of the horn being flattened as at 9 and provided with a kerf 10 to receive the edge of the saw, the back of the horn being preferably a convex curve both longitudinally and transversely and the face of the cone at the top being beveled as at llleaving a dull straight or slightly rounded edge at the top as at 12. This horn is preferably carried by a plate 13 which is adapted-to slide on the bed for the purpose of adjustment and is locked in position by a set screw 14: passing through a slot in the plate and engaging the bed.

The operation will be readily understood from the drawings.

The horn is properly adjusted relatively to the saw and rotary movement is imparted to the latter. The operator takes the skins in both hands, placing an open end of each skin over the horn, the edge of the horn passing within the skin and then drawing the skin down over the horn, the saw splitting the skin as it is drawn down. A single quick move.- ment for each skin is all that is required to open it out and to split it. The skins are opened out and split in this manner with great rapidity, no skilled labor being required,

a single unskilled operator doing with my improved machine the work of four or five skilled operators and doing it better as the skins are perfectly opened out by being drawn down over the horn.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- The combination in a machine for opening and splitting dried skins of a semi-conical horn provided in its fiat side with a kerf, its upper end being beveled and provided with a dull edge by which the skins are opened out and a saw engaging the kerf by which the skins are split as they are drawn down.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

PATRICK YOUNG. Witnesses:

VIRGIL E. BARNUM, NORMAN HODGE. 

